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Monday, December 15, 2014

Florida's coastal ecosystems are one
of the greatest assets that Florida has. With more coastline than any
other state in the contiguous United States, they are a source of both
economic, environmental and recreational benefit. People come from all
over the world to visit the beautiful Florida beaches. In addition to
people
sea turtles also come from all over the world to lay their eggs on
Florida's Atlantic coast, one of only a handful of places in the world
that they come. Mangroves are one of Florida's true natives. Three types of mangroves are found in Florida: red, black, and white. They cover
south Florida with a verdant and life-giving shield that nurtures marine
organisms of all kinds, provides nesting sites for shore.

Mangroves
are one of Florida's true natives. They thrive in salty environments
because they are able to obtain fresh water from saltwater. Some secrete
excess salt through their leaves, others block absorption of salt at
their roots. Florida's estimated 469,000 acres of mangrove forests
contribute to the overall health of the state's southern coastal zone.
This ecosystem traps and cycles various organic materials, chemical
elements, and important nutrients. Mangrove roots act not only as
physical traps but provide attachment surfaces for various marine
organisms. Many of these attached organisms filter water through their
bodies and, in turn, trap and cycle nutrients.

The relationship between mangroves and their associated marine life
cannot be overemphasized. Mangroves provide protected nursery areas for
fishes, crustaceans, and shellfish. They also provide food for a
multitude of marine species such as snook,
snapper, tarpon, jack, sheepshead,
red drum, oyster, and shrimp. Florida's
important recreational and commercial fisheries will drastically decline
without healthy mangrove forests. Many animals find shelter either in
the roots or branches of mangroves. Mangrove branches are rookeries, or
nesting areas, for beautiful coastal birds such as brown pelicans and
roseate spoonbills. Mangroves also filter water and maintain water
quality and clarity.

Monday, December 8, 2014

A Car accident this weekend at Big Cypress Indian Reservation resulted in three people losing their life and others injured. Unfortunately the accident occurred when an SUV hit a a 300 pound bear on Snake Road during foggy conditions. The bear did not survive the accident which caused a chain reaction. According to the report after the SUV hit the bear they pulled over to the side of the road and the car following them did the same. Because of the fog, an oncoming vehicle did not see the people on the side of the road. and it plowed into them.

There
have been more and more black bear sightings in Florida. According to
the FWC You are more likely to see a panther or a black bear today in
Florida than someone here 40 years ago! There was a total of 2,257
Florida black bear sighting reports as of June 2014, with more than 500
of those reports containing uploaded photographs. Sightings of bears
were reported in 59 of the state’s 67 counties. As the Florida bear population grows, so does the risk of accidents on our highways. Authorities estimate that about 230 bears died in car crashes last year, as opposed to 43 deaths in 1993.

Bears aren't the only one animals at risk from car accidents in Floridian nature. Florida panthers once enjoyed their perch atop the food chain across a
vast dominion. They were all over the Florida peninsula, from the
Panhandle to the Everglades. The biggest threats to the remaining
panthers are their health and continuing loss of habitat. Florida
panthers have an unusually large number of health problems. Most are
related to poor habitat conditions and genetic defects. Around the
Everglades, panthers have been contaminated with mercury by eating
raccoons high in mercury, which passes
through the aquatic food chain. It's sad to say that Florida panthers
are killed by cars and trucks, particularly on State Road 29 and
Alligator Alley (I-75), and, although it is against the law, hunters
still shoot panthers occasionally.

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Everglades National Park contains the southern 25 percent of
the original
Everglades marshland region of southwestern Florida. The park
visited by one million people each year and has been declared an
International Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage Site, and a Wetland of
International Importance, only one of three locations in the world to
appear on all three lists. The Everglades is a slow-moving system of
rivers, flowing southwest at about .25 miles per day, fed by the
Kissimmee River and Lake Okeechobee.

Unlike most other U.S. national parks, Everglades National Park was
created to protect a fragile ecosystem instead of safeguarding a
geographic feature. Floridians hoping to preserve at least part of the
Everglades first proposed that the area become a national park in 1923.
Five years later, the Florida state legislature established the Tropical
Everglades National Park Commission to study the formation of a
protected area. Thirty-six species designated as threatened or protected
live in the park, including the
Florida panther, the
American crocodile, and the
West Indian manatee. Protecting the largest U.S. wilderness area
east of the Mississippi River, the park is the most significant breeding
ground for tropical wading birds in North America, and contains the
largest
mangrove ecosystem in the
western hemisphere. More than 350 species of birds, 300 species of fresh
and saltwater fish, 40 species of mammals, and 50 species of reptiles
live within Everglades National Park. All of southern Florida's fresh
water is recharged by the park, including that of the Biscayne Aquifer.

Florida panthers once enjoyed their perch atop the food chain across a
vast dominion. They were all over the Florida peninsula, from the
Panhandle to the Everglades. The biggest threats to the remaining
panthers are their health and continuing loss of habitat. Florida
panthers have an unusually large number of health problems. Most are
related to poor habitat conditions and genetic defects. Around the
Everglades, panthers have been contaminated with mercury by eating
raccoons high in mercury, which passes
through the aquatic food chain. It's sad to say that Florida panthers
are killed by cars and trucks, particularly on State Road 29 and
Alligator Alley (I-75), and, although it is against the law, hunters
still shoot panthers occasionally.